Conveyer



July 4, 1939. H, KNIGHT Er AL 2,164,713

CONVEYER Filed April 1, 1938 INVENTORS. Her/77a P A H'ghf 7770mm; 5.Wary/4? 3 ATTORNEY Patented July 4, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICEKansas City, Mo.

Application April 1, 1938, Serial No. 199,384

2 Claims.

This invention relates to conveyers generally and particularly that typewhich is collapsible and may be set up in any desired location and inproximity to a board which forms a part of a game that employs darts inthe playing.

The primary object of this invention is to provide a collapsible andtransportable conveyer that may be quickly and easily moved to and. froman operative condition and which, when in such condition, is eificient,strong, simple in construction, and will serve the players of the gamewith a minimum amount of effort on their part.

Another important aim of this invention is to provide a pair of uniquelyconstructed supports, the nature of which 1s such as to require noanchoring means other than quickly placeable Weights; which supports maybe collapsed to a condition for transportation when not in use.

One of the main features of this invention resides in the employment ofa pair of specially disposed trolley members, by each of which iscarried a dart receiving receptacle, which receptacles simultaneouslymove along the trolleys in opposite directions when the proximal endsthereof are moved to positions above and below a horizontal planeextending through the point of attachment of the other ends of thetrolleys.

Another important feature of this invention is the provision of aspecially formed carrier for game darts, which carrier is made offoraminous material and provided with a false bottom or partition nearthe bottom thereof, which will hold the darts in an upright or protectedposition during the time they are being carried from one support of theconveyer to the other along the trolleys thereof.

Minor objects of the invention are important to the efficient operationof this conveyer, and such will appear during the course of thefollowing specification, referring to the accompanying drawing wherein:

Figure 1 is a condensed plan View of a conveyer made in accordance withthis invention and disposed adjacent to the game board.

Fig. 2 is a condensed side elevation of the conveyer.

Fig. 3 is an end view of the conveyer showing the throw-arm in twopositions.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged, fragmentary detailed section view through onesupport of the conveyer taken on line IV-IV of Fig. 2; and,

Fig. 5 is a longitudinal, vertical central sectional view through one ofthe carriers.

A large number of games which use darts 8 in the nature of thoseillustrated in Fig. 5, em-

ploy a board If! that is mounted upon a vertical wall some distance fromthe line from which the player must throw the darts. These darts 8 mustbe returned to the aforesaid line of play after a predetermined numberhave been stuck into board It) and at the present time, it is customaryto have an umpire located near board ill to remove darts 8 so that theymay be sent back to the players along the line aforementioned.

Such games have become so popular that the problem of maintaining asupply of darts 8 at the line l2, which is diagrammatically illustratedin Fig. 1, is serious. The game is played. for example, in recreationhalls, churches, gymnasiums, and other locations, where a permanentconveyer would be undesirable. The conveyer embodying this invention iscollapsible and may be set up with ease and dispatch.

.Ihe ruggedness and simplicity of the conveyer is noteworthy andreference to the drawing will readily indicate that there are two spacedapart supports l4 and I6 each of which are held in play by a weight thatcomprises a number of bags of sand 18, or any other similar weightimparting element.

Support 14 comprises a pair of base members 2&3 each of which areprovided with notches 22, and that support a platform 24 upon which restbags 28. Members 2%] should be of angle iron and upwardly convergingstandards 26 each have pivotal connection with their respective membersas at 23. The upper portion of standards 26 are spaced apart and securedtogether by a plate 3@ to which are attached the hereinafter mentionedtrolley members.

A brace 32 is associated with each support 26 and the upper ends ofthese braces are pivotally secured as at 34 to their respectivestandards 26. A laterally extending pin 36 is carried by each brace 32to engage either of the notches 22 when support E4 is set up in theoperative position.

Support H3 is substantially the same as support 54 in that it has a pairof base members 38 provided with notches 40 and a platform 42. Inclinedstandards 44 of support iii are pivotally secured to members 38 as at 46and a brace 48 is associated with each standard 44. These braces 48 arepivotally attached to standards 44 as at EU and the lower ends of braces43 have laterally extending pins 52 to engage notches 40. The upper endsof standards 44 of support [6 are relatively close together and carry afriction plate 54, which in turn has an arm 56 pivotally securedthereto.

A bolt or similar element 58 serves as the medium for pivotallyinterconnecting arm 56 and plate 54. This arm extends outwardly to eachside of support it and swings from the position shown in full lines ofFig. 3, to the position shown in dotted lines of that figure and viceversa.

Detents 60 are embossed in plate 54 so as to yieldably maintain arm 56in either one of the two positions illustrated. A handle 62 mounted onone end of arm 56 is placed in convenient reach of the player.

A pair of trolley members 64 of identical construction extend fromsupport M to support 56 and are maintained taut by the pull exertedthereon both by the placement of supports i l and i6 and by springs 66which form a medium for interconnecting the ends of trolley members tothe parts of the aforesaid spaced apart supports. One end of eachtrolley member 56 is attached to plate 36 of support it while the otherend of the trolley is attached to the end of arm When the supports arein the operative position, the point of attachment between trolleymembers lid and support M, is on the same horizontal plane as the axisof rotation of arm 56; therefore, when the arm is in either one of thepositions shown in Fig. 3, the trolley members must be inclined out ofthe horizontal plane and in opposite direc as illustrated in Fig. 2, tothe end that the ca:- riers 68, one of which is mounted on each trolleyM, will move by the action of gravity from one end of trolley 64 to theother.

A bumper in the nature of a small block of resilient material it, iscarried by each end of each trolley 64 so that when the carriers 68reach the end of the trolleys, they will be stopped without objectionalreaction. Each carrier 68 is constructed of a ioraminous body 52 that isprovided with a partition 14 disposed in spaced, oarallel relation withthe bottom of the body. Thus, the points of darts 8 may project throughpartition 'EG and the bottom of the body in a manner similar to thatillustrated in Fig. 5. So supporting the darts will insure that thefeathers which form a part thereof, will not be bent or otherwisedestroyed during transportation.

A hanger H5 is secured to body '52 and is substantially U-shaped. Thetwo legs of U-shaped hanger are provided with guide holes l8therethrough, which receive trolley members 64 and the portion of hanger76 between the legs, is provided with a pair of rollers which ridedirectly upon the associated trolley members 64. These rollers 86 aregrooved to fit over trolley members 64 and when the said trolley 56 is1-1 tile passed through holes 18 the danger of rollers 80 jumping fromthe trolley member is entirely eliminated.

The operation of a conveyer made in accordance with this invention isobvious when it is observed that merely swinging arm 56 from theposition shown in full lines of Fig. 3 to the dotted position therein,will reverse the angle of inclination of both trolley members 64. Whenthis action takes place, the carriers which are shown in Figs. 1 and 2,will be moved by gravity along their respective trolley members 64 topositions near the supports which are now at the opposite ends oftrolley members 64 from the location of the carriers. Thus, one carrier68 is always near the line I2, while the other carrier is near board In.As darts 8 are removed from board I U by the umpire, they are placed inthe closest carrier 68 and when the players need a supp1y of darts, itis only necessary to move arm 56 about its pivotal point so as to causethe loaded carrier to move to a position where it may be reached by theplayer.

In folding the supports l4 and 16, it is but necessary to remove thepins from the notches, swing the platform and base members up againstthe standards, and then move the braces against the base members, thus asubstantially flat,'compact bundle is created and the supports may be,stored or transported as desired.

It is obvious to one skilled in the art that conveyers having difierentappearances and physical characteristics from the one hereinillustrated, might be made without departingfrom the spirit of theinvention or scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desiredto be secured by Letters Patent is: 7

1. In a conveyer of the character described, a carrier for darts havingelongated points thereon, comprising a body of foraminous material; anda partition of foraminous material'in the, body, partition being inspaced parallel relation with the bottom of the body, the distancebetween said partition and the bottom of the body being less than thelength of the said points of the darts.

2. In a conveyer of the character described having a. trolley member, acarrier ford arts comprising a double bottom body of foraminousmaterial; and means for mounting the body on the trolley member of theconveyer, the distance between the walls of the double bottom of saidbody being less than the length of the points on the darts.

HERMAN P. KNIGHT; THOMAS B. FRANKLIN.

